According to British author Walter Bagehot, “A Parliament is nothing less than a big meeting of more or less idle people.” Whether or not you agree, one thing is certain: when parliament is hung, they can’t get much more idle. The term hung parliament, less commonly known as a balanced parliament, refers to a the […]

As we leave the spring behind, and summer begins, it is time to celebrate the summer solstice. As you probably know, the summer solstice, also known as the estival solstice, takes place around June 21st (depending on the year, it can also take place on June 20th or on June 22nd). On the day of […]

Juneteenth, a hybrid of ‘June’ and ‘nineteenth’, may not be the most creative name for a holiday. Still, this date remains an important anniversary in American history. It was on this date back in 1865 that slavery was finally abolished in Texas. Today, it is the oldest known celebration honoring the end of slavery in […]

When we think of the term executive privilege, we tend to think of scandal, smarminess, secrecy, and crimes committed by the executive branch – okay, we tend to think of Richard Nixon. Executive privilege, however, is as old as the presidency itself, dating back to George Washington; there is no reason to think he had […]

People have been celebrating dads for a long time now. The idea of commemorating one’s father goes back to ancient times, and is even in the Old Testament (‘Honor your father…as the Lord your God has commanded you’). While many cultures around the world have long had events or observances centered around fatherhood, the concept […]

In 1859, the United States and the United Kingdom almost went to war, all because of a pig. Of course, we don’t typically think of pigs as instigators of international conflict, but apparently settlers in what is now Washington state took their swines seriously. Here is a short account of one of the stranger and […]

Nuke the Moon? It’s one thing to shoot for the stars, but nuking the moon? It might sound like a crazy idea today, but apparently during the Cold War 1950s, nothing was off the table. In America, we like to think of ourselves as the triumphant winners of the Space Race. It’s Old Glory that’s […]

Love, 15, 30, 40? The Tennis scoring system is weird. From the moment a game begins, nothing really makes sense. Love to Love? Why hate on the classic zero to zero? It doesn’t stop there; as a match progresses things get even stranger. 15, 30, 40? What? Throw in a deuce and now we’re completely […]

Cuban Lectors No cigar can or will ever match the taste and mystique of a Cuban cigar. Cigar aficionados throughout the world agree that there is no cigar of higher quality than a Cuban. Of course, Cuban cigars are hand-rolled, which makes them all the tastier. But have you ever thought about what happens inside […]

Advanced Maps & Word Ladders – an Epic Quiz Construction Tutorial Editor’s Note: This post was written by bhenderson79, a Sporcle moderator who occasionally graces us with amazing blog posts. Sporcle’s quiz creation tools give us the power to create some really cool visual games – particularly since the release of the customizable color & […]

The History of Trivia Here at Sporcle, we have dedicated exorbitant amounts of time to ensuring that you, Sporclers, have plenty of resources to waste as much time and get as little work done as possible by playing trivia quizzes. We spend all of our time thinking about and obsessing over trivia, but we rarely […]

The Unofficial Start of Summer Today is Memorial Day in the US. For many of us, the holiday marks the unofficial start to summer. It’s become a time for backyard BBQs, parades, and a big ‘ol serving of Americana. Unfortunately, sometimes lost in planning out our three-day-weekends is the real reason we celebrate the day. […]

Communicating with quiz makers As a curator, one of your most important tasks is to stay in communication with quiz makers. After all, many quiz makers, especially new ones, crave feedback for their quizzes. So, how should you communicate with these folks? As a curator, you have three options: Commenting directly on the quiz. Reaching […]

10 Funny Town Names Naming things is hard, especially when it comes to naming a town. How do you pick a name that accurately reflects the unique character and location of a town? We think that the namers of these towns did a pretty great job. Hopefully you’ll get a chance to visit some of […]

 If you’re reading this, you probably already have a decent handle on how to make top notch quizzes. There’s always room for improvement though. Even some of our best quiz makers may be overlooking some very helpful tools. So, we would like to offer a quick list of six different features that you may find helpful […]